The coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic appears to be on the rise in Europe, as Austria has announced plans to re-impose a complete lockdown, while neighboring Germany has warned that it may follow suit. On Friday, Austria reported 15,809 new infections, a record high, prompting the government to announce new restrictions. This will be Austria’s fourth nationwide blockade since the beginning of the pandemic last year. “We have not succeeded in persuading enough people to get vaccinated,” Alexander Schallenberg, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, said at a press conference.
“It is sad that such measures must still be taken.” Austria’s 10-day blockade from Monday and the plan to compel citizens to vaccinate from February 1 angered many people and sparked opposition from the far-right Liberal Party. “As of today, Austria is a dictatorship,” Herbert Kickl, the leader of the Liberal Party, posted a photo with this inscription on Facebook.
At the same time, according to Health Minister Jens Spahn, the fourth wave of Covid has plunged Germany into a national emergency, and vaccination alone cannot reduce infections. Spann’s warning indicates that Germany, Europe’s largest economy, may adopt blockade measures.
At the press conference, Spann was asked whether Germany can rule out a complete Austrian blockade. “We are in a situation now-even if this generates a news alert-we can’t rule out anything,” Spann replied. We are in a state of national emergency. ” As Europe once again becomes the center of the global pandemic, some countries are cracking down on unvaccinated people.
According to Bloomberg News, the Dutch government has proposed to exclude negative tests from the national health pass and only allow vaccination or recovery from infection. On Friday night, as the Dutch protest against the new crown virus containment measures turned into violence, the Dutch police fired warning shots and deployed water cannons to repel the crowd.
The police said in a statement that two people were injured “in connection with the shooting,” but did not provide more details about the shooting injuries and the ammunition used.
News Source : Hindustan Times
